I needed a new bike helmet. Found one on-sale - Cannondale is a respected name brand, right?

I just received the helmet - the Teramo model.

What a piece of crap. Made in China, of course. It's a helmet, but no where near worth the price, even on sale. The velcro padding inside the helmet is cheap, worthless and already starting to come off. I haven't even worn it yet!!

I do some research and it appears it's been subject to a recall or at least a not recommended status. It's been since upgraded after they modified the securing buckle. But of course, despite being brand new, it's the old style buckle. Now, I've never been in an accident before in my 40 years of riding a bike. But maybe I should return this?

1) Made in China (bastards - Cannondale and the mfr)2) Cheaply fucking made - coming apart while in the box3) Current buckle was subject to testing failures.

Cannondale - fuck you. I mean, how can it escape the factory when it fails just basic testing?

Side general bitch -- I'm soooo fucking tired of crap made in China. Curse all CEOs, biz execs and companies who make the decision to have their products made in China.

"Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety." - B.Franklin"Wrong does not cease to be wrong because the majority share in it." L.Tolstoy

The old wisecrack when talking about racing or motorcycling helmets: "Cheap? How much is your head worth?"

When I was motorcycling, or racing cars or bicycles, I always got the best product Bell made for the particular application. Of course, that was back when Bell was the only reputable helmet manufacturer, and strictly applied the Snell standards. Nowadays, there are real choices, so I'd say return the POS and get something worthy of the job.

Yes. Planning to return. My problem is that I have no idea which helmet is good. They all look the same to me, especially online. Same materials. Same basic shape. Even brands are mostly meaningless to me in their unfamiliarity. I rely solely on reviews which failed me here.

But I will be returning this. And researching again.

"Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety." - B.Franklin"Wrong does not cease to be wrong because the majority share in it." L.Tolstoy

I was wearing a Giro helmet when I was hit by a car doing 55 mph in 2016. I bent her a post with my head so I’m a fan of Giro’s to say the least. That said, I’m currently wearing a Cannondale CAAD helmet and have been happy with it. Not sure where it’s made but I paid almost $100 for it on sale, it’s nicely made, and held up well for 2 years.

I'll buy accessories or repeat items online, but for fitted items or ones of higher importance, I'd try to find a local shop for the help.

We have a local shop that doesn't even stock most of the smaller stuff, because he knows you can/will find it cheaper online. But he still takes the time to measure and discuss the minor differences in frames and safety gear as he knows that trying to buy those online is hit or miss at best.

I shall respect you until you open your mouth, from that point on, you must earn it yourself.

I’ve been extremely happy with my Giro Bishop w/MIPS...paid a little more, but worth it. Wife’s been happy with her Bontrager Quantum.

I view cycling helmets the same way I do motorcycle helmets...you get what you pay for, so what’s your head worth? There’s a reason why I wear a Schuberth. The level of fit, finish, comfort and engineering is worth it to me.

___________________________"Those that can't laugh at themselves leave the job to others..."

Originally posted by konata88:I needed a new bike helmet. Found one on-sale - Cannondale is a respected name brand, right?

So, you were shopping based on price, right? Guess what, that is the reason why any low cost (or medium cost) item you can purchase is Made in China. If you want to pay about 4 times as much then look for a US made product. While I don't like it as long as items can be made overseas at a labor rate about 1/12 the US labor rate you are going to find most of the common consumer products are made overseas. IT's also an illustration of why the 15 dollar per hour minimum wage won't fly until inflation reduces the value of a dollar by about 1/2.

My current helmet is a Louis Garneau.Likely to be soon replaced, once I get back to riding. The tension adjuster at the back has a much less positive 'click' than it had when it was new a few years ago.

Happy with the helmet & would buy another. Giro would be on my shortlist as well.

Side general bitch -- I'm soooo fucking tired of crap made in China. Curse all CEOs, biz execs and companies who make the decision to have their products made in China.

I work for a manufacturer of electronics equipment and I would respond to your statement with: I'm soooo fucking tired of crap made in China. Curse all people who make the decision to buy products made in China.

We tried for several years to make things in the U.S. and Europe and lost a ton of market share because our customers flocked to products built in China. We still make some stuff outside of China but if we want to compete unfortunately we have to get a large amount of our stuff made in China.

If you want products not made in China then stop buying products made in China. And let companies know why you aren't buying their stuff. Until the consumer agrees to pay more (for typically better quality stuff) then you will get what you want.

I personally try to avoid buying anything made in China. There are just some things that are difficult to avoid -- and my complaint is that Corporate America often doesn't give us a chance to choose. And I think often times try to obfuscate. More and more, I see items listed online as "imported" and so, like is the liberal theme, I have to buy it to see where it's made.

What especially pisses me off are companies that have things made in China but still charge prices like they were made in the US (or other first world country). I'm not paying premium prices for products that are made like crap. To me, that's not about the cost of labor. That's just greed.

"Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety." - B.Franklin"Wrong does not cease to be wrong because the majority share in it." L.Tolstoy

It certainly goes both ways. You are right that some companies purposely try to hide the country of origin when it is China. And there are certainly companies that make shit in China but keep them marked at the same price.

My industry may be unique in a few ways but when the Chinese got into the game the prices reflected the country of origin, which drove our customers to them almost immediately. The product we made was vastly superior in almost every way but price. But price drove the market and all we heard was the term "good enough". If the Chinese stuff was good enough to make money for our customers then they bought it.

I don't fault them for it. They are in business to make money. I just wanted to make it clear that not all manufacturers go to China because we are greedy. Sometimes it is what we have to do in order to compete in a market driven by the consumer.

Side story, a cheap helmet, or even an old helmet is better than no helmet. I got a new helmet after daily wearing one for five years, it was in not so great shape, but kept it just because. When my friends and I decided to go for a ride (this was while I was attending BYU, doing real mountain biking vs what we have here in Houston, ugghhh) my roommate didn't have a helmet and was going to go without one. I insisted and he relented to wearing my old helmet, something is better than nothing. Sure enough while we were being stupid on the bikes his front tire catches a rut and he flies over the handlebars and slides head first into a rock. Face scraped up and helmet split down the middle, could have been worse. Something is better than nothing.